Real cases ... real crimes

Here’s how scammers operate ... in the streets. Check out the Insurance Hall of Shame for more about America’s masters of mayhem.

Crash gang crashes. A crash ring tried to steal $279 million with thousands of false claims for treating fake whiplash injuries in the New York City area. Mikhail Zemlyansky hired crash “passengers” to fake whiplash. Crooked doctors forged medical records. Zemlyansky received 15 years in federal prison.

Botched arson. Mark Leonard torched his Indianapolis home for $300,000 of insurance money. The house exploded, destroying much of the neighborhood. Dion Longworth lived next door. He was burned alive in his searing basement. Leonard received life without parole.

Agent of fraud. Insurance agent Monica Smart was anything but. The Topeka, Kans. agent stole tens of thousands of dollars in client premiums without buying clients any coverage. She left them dangerously uncovered. Smart must repay $160,000, and received more than two years in federal prison.

Contractor con. Jack and Ryan Thayer trolled neighborhoods after storms, offering to fix damaged homes. The Bristol Township, Pa. duo stole more than $770,000 in down payments from storm-traumatized homeowners — without fixing the homes. Many victims were elderly. At least the Thayers have a new roof: They received up to 20 years in prison.

Slip & fall tripped up. Dozens of people tripped and were badly hurt on damaged sidewalks in a quiet Philadelphia neighborhood. The falls were fake. Lawyer Andrew Gaber coached them how to sit down and act hurt. His gang made $400,000 in false injury claims against innocent homeowners. Gaber committed suicide, and his gang members were convicted.

Injury plot rocked. NYPD cop Christopher Inserra said he hurt his right arm while taking an injured employee to see a doc. Inserra couldn’t bend or use the arm, he lied. He collected thousands in workers-comp money. So why was he cavorting onstage with his punk band — flailing and fist pumping? Inserra was convicted, booted from the force and lost his career.

Chemo con. Dr. Farid Fata pumped 550 patients with painful chemo drugs — yet many patients had no cancer. The Detroit-area cancer doc billed insurers $225 million. One cancer-free patient received 155 chemo treatments in just two years. Another patient’s teeth fell out. Fata was dosed with 45 years in federal prison.

Sick health plan. A fake health insurer stole $28 million in premiums from 17,000 trusting people. Some victims were acutely ill, even cancer. Yet William Worthy refused to pay their claims. A Houston man had emergency back surgery. Worthy stuck him with a $105,000 bill. Worthy was stuck with nearly seven years in federal prison.

Lethal love. A hike in the Rocky Mountains was fatal. Harold Henthorn pushed his devoted wife Toni off a sheer cliff to steal $4.5 million of life-insurance money. The Colorado man was unemployed and sponging off doctor Toni. Henthorn said Toni slipped and fell. His murder plot fell ... apart. Henthorn received life in prison.

Tougher fraud laws. Fraud is a specific crime in nearly all states. Tough fraud laws also are made every year. They clamp down on shady contractors, bogus airbags, staged-crash rings and other insurance crimes.

Medicare cracks down. Medicare strike forces are hunting down schemers in hotspots such as South Florida. Medicare also is booting more crooked medical providers from the system — and keeping them out.